Although there has long been strong criticism of civilian casualties caused in the war in Afghanistan, the problem has rather deepened with each passing day since no efforts have been made to address it. According to the latest figures released by the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) that documents civilian casualties, every year shows the war claims more civilian lives compared to the previous year. Airstrikes carried out by foreign troops are a leading cause of civilian casualties besides insurgent attacks. Last month, UNAMA expressed grave concern over the mounting number of civilian casualties caused by air raids. According to UNAMA, the number of civilians killed or wounded in airstrikes in the first half of the year shows a 52 percent spike compared to the same period last year.
Killing Afghan civilians by foreign troops means adding fueling to the fire. As long as the problem is not fundamentally resolved, the imposed war seems impossible to end. When innocent Afghan civilians lose their lives in the airstrikes conducted by international troops, justice is not delivered to the families of the victims. Neither the Afghan government is able to hold foreigners accountable for their conduct, nor is the United States ready to allow investigations into the war crimes committed by its soldiers in Afghanistan. Even Washington has publicly opposed the investigations of the International Criminal Court (ICC) into the alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by American soldiers during the war in Afghanistan.
Following the announcement of Trump’s new strategy for Afghanistan which lifted restrictions on American soldiers, civilian casualties further increased. Instead of containing the war and improving the situation, the move backfired because civilian casualties make the recruitment of new fighters easier for the militants. Every incident of civilian casualties disgruntles many people, and prompts them to join the rebels. However the governments are strong, their possibility of survival shrinks when they face the outrage and ire of their people. If leaders of the National Unity Government really want the regime to sustain, they should avoid the public outrage provoked by civilian casualties, and not allow the adversities of the past repeat once again, and all the gains made as a result of countless sacrifices to go in vein.
